Hurrah!

Lots of smiles and cause for celebration at Hoipolloi this week. Hugh and Simon are back from Sydney and it is lovely to have company in the office again. Things got so quiet last week that I actually started talking to myself. Never a good sign. I then put the radio on in order to hear some other human voices, but I soon regretted this decision when a song came on that I just had to get up and dance to (I won't tell you which one as it will only unveil my horrendous taste in music). So there I was, prancing around, when I noticed that there was a builder on the roof peeking in the window and laughing at me. Oh the shame.

Anyway, there are plenty of things to be happy about to distract me from the mortifying embarrassment incurred last week...

Item number 1: we have over 1000 followers on Twitter! Considering that we only started tweeting about a year ago, that's a fantastic number. Huge thanks to everyone who has supported us. Please keep following!

Item number 2: Hugh had a brilliant run of 360 in Sydney. The show went extremely well, in fact so well, and the weather was so lovely that Hugh and Simon didn't get a chance to send a report of the trip while they were there. Once they've recovered from the jet lag and readjusted to the arctic UK temperature they will write up their adventures so that you can read all about the festival.

Item number 3: Hugh Hughes' Rough Book is still going strong. We hope you have been enjoying the glimpses into Hugh's studio and the things he creates in there. The Rough Book will be continuing for the next few weeks, with new posts on Mondays and Fridays. I'll also be doing a 'non Rough Book' post on Wednesdays. So keep your eyes on the blog as there'll be plenty of new things springing up.

Item number 4: We are very very excited about going to Oxford and Liverpool in March. We'd love to see you there. You can book tickets for the Oxford show (3rd March) by clicking here, and the Liverpool shows (4th, 5th, 6th March) by clicking here.

And last, but by no means least...(in fact you may say I've saved the best for last)...
Our very own Mr Ben Frimston, who you may have seen recently in The Doubtful Guest or in the famous Rowntree's Randoms advert, or just in the picture above, is on the silver screen again. He's starring in a new Burger King advert. Here it is...

EDIT (14 July 2010): Flicking back through some old blog entries, I've just discovered the video has been taken down from YouTube. Sorry that you've missed seeing Ben in that BK advert, but he's currently appearing in a new Dutch beer advert which you can find here! Simon

Hello 2010!

Happy New Year! I hope you all had wonderfully indulgent Christmases with plenty of food and prezzies, snow, carols, decorations and other lovely things, plus brilliant New Year celebrations including bubbly and countdowns and Auld Lang Syne. But alas all good things must come to an end (at least for another 365 days) and 'real life' is back. Of course it's not all terrible and here at Hoipolloi we have many exciting things on the cards. Most excitingly...Sydney. Hugh will be in there performing 360 at the festival. So if you're in Sydney,do go along. If you're not, but you need a holiday, then you should go too. Click here for more info.

As much as I would love to go along for the ride, muggins here will be remaining in Cambridge for the foreseeable future. Aside from freezing my face and fingers on my bike as I cycle around the city in my shiny new shoes, and attempting to stick to my probably un-stickable-to-resolutions, I'll be preparing things for Hugh's trip to Oxford and Liverpool in March. So if you can't make it to Sydney, but you still want to see 360, then here's your chance.

Thanks to Geraint Lewis for the picture of Hugh

Neon, brains and cake

I was most intrigued by Hugh’s recent ‘tweet’ about fluorescent clothing sales. In fact I thought I might be able to work this trend in with my ‘bed-linen chic’ collection. Sadly my trawling through news websites didn’t offer many neon revelations, although I did stumble across something else fascinating. Now I know I’ve been guilty of straying away from topic recently, taking what is essentially a theatre blog into the realms of fashion and gastronomy, however I am going to remedy this immediately with some very relevant news regarding what happens to an actor’s brain when they play a role. It’s fascinating stuff I promise...

Fiona Shaw recently had an MRI scan to assist with some brain research in London. This was very brave of Fiona. I had an MRI scan recently and can tell you that it is not at all pleasant. You get strapped down so that you can’t move and then shoved into a big tube which makes strange noises. Terrifying. Although you do get a picture of your brain at the end, which is rather exciting.

While Fiona was having her scan she recited some lines from T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land. Personally I would’ve gone for a splash of Spike Milligan to keep my sprits up while stuck in the scary tube, but hey, each to their own. The results of the scan showed a few things. Firstly, that Fiona used more areas of the brain when reciting poetry than when counting. Good. Also, that she used the part of the brain called the ‘infra parietal sulkus’ . To me this sounds like the name of a dinosaur, but what do I know about brains? Or dinosaurs for that matter. Anyway, Wikipedia tells me that the ‘infra parietal sulkus’ is associated with memory, analysis and doing a complex transformation of a visual image. Interestingly, when they are acting, actors use a part of the brain to create a voice which is different to the part of the brain we usually use when we speak. So that’s what happens inside an actor’s brain when they’re on stage! Aren’t you glad that’s been cleared up?

The results of the experiment and other similar ones will be displayed in an exhibition on identity at the Wellcome trust. If you haven’t already been, the Wellcome Collection is WELL worth a visit. (Please excuse the horrendous joke. I just couldn’t help myself). It is a fascinating place and the cafe there is fantastic. In fact I’m going to take this moment for a bit of cake news (now a regular item on the blog): the Wellcome cafe has some of the most gorgeous cupcakes your eyes and taste buds may ever have the pleasure of enjoying.

Righty – o, from brains and cake back to our very own Hugh Hughes:

You can see him. Tonight! He is performing the marvellous ‘360’ at the Drum Theatre in Plymouth until November 28th.

Don’t forget that he’s also going to be in Sydney in the New Year. Last time he visited tickets were snapped up like hot cakes (cough, wink, cough) so make sure you visit http://www.sydneyfestival.org.au/ to grab yours in good time.

One final note before I depart for now... I am delighted to share the news that Hugh will be performing 360 at the Oxford Playhouse on March 3rd 2010. Although my heart lies with Cambridge, Oxford is pretty lovely too. Why don’t you book yourself a ticket and make a fun trip to Oxford for some punting and a wander around the Ashmolean or Magdalene College’s deer park? You can’t beat a bit of fresh air and spot of deer spying now can you?

Thanks to My Name is Rom for this fab brain picture

Another Award

Today I received the very exciting news that we've won another award! Hugh and Sioned have been rewarded for their travels down to Melbourne with Floating by being named Best Live Theatre in The Age newspaper's inaugural M-ie Awards.

The awards were announced back on the 8 November but I've only just received word from our friends at the fantastic Arts House, who were our generous hosts during Floating's time in the city.

Sadly there is no glamorous awards ceremony to attend and I'm not even sure we'll receive any form of trophy to add to the cabinet (or the awards shelf as it actually exists as). But it's a delight to form part of the highlights of the social year in Melbourne.

And I'm really impressed by the lovely write-up it's received...

"You'd need to be lacking a heart not to have fallen in love with this teeny-tiny production from Wales. Somewhere between performance art, stand-up comedy and old-fashioned storytelling, it felt like the most thoughtful and generous gift you'd ever received. From a stranger, no less."

Also commended in this category were Jersey Boys and Ontroerend Goed's Once and For All We're Gonna Tell You Who We Are So Shut up and Listen. Several of us were fans of their Internal which played in Edinburgh this year, so it feels like honourable company to reside in.

The awards are a ludicrously diverse mix 0f categories from Most In-Demand Party Guest (which went to film star Eric Bana although Dannii Minogue did get a commendation) and Best Fashion Moment (going to Cate Blanchett and her blanket dress - although I have no idea what that is!) to the seemingly more sensible Best Pub/Bar (Madame Brussels - a choice that I'd definitely agree on) and Best Coffee (which the fantastic Auction Rooms missed out on, but they're definitely worth a visit if you're heading to a show at the Arts House).

You can read the full article here, although you might have to scroll down or skip to page 4 to find us!

If you're reading this in Australia, don't forget that Hugh will be returning to Sydney (although sadly not Melbourne on this occasion) for performances of 360 at the Sydney Festival (22 to 30 Jan). Tickets for that can be booked here.

Posted by Simon Bedford [Producer, Hoipolloi]

Hugh speaks... travelling to Edinburgh

Hello! I am very happy to write this blog. We have embarked on a short tour of STORY OF A RABBIT in the UK, five months after our tour in the USA. It is really good to be performing this show again. I really do enjoy it. Aled said, "it’s like visiting an old friend."

We'd like to say a big ‘thank you’ to everyone who has joined us so far – in Eastleigh and Cambridge - and to say we are very much looking forward to meeting our audience in Edinburgh, Leicester and Plymouth later this month.

Right now I’m travelling to Edinburgh by train. My favourite kind of transport. We’ve been through gentle rising fog and blinding bursts of sunshine. It’s remarkable to think how this ball of a planet is enveloped in so many weathers. My brother once left a leather football in the garden throughout the whole winter – when my father found it in the spring, it was deflated, sagging and discoloured. "Luckily this planet is not made of leather," Aled said and we all laughed and then imagined we were part of a giant’s game of football in Brazil. Then Tom said, "In a way, Pele is a giant."

I haven’t been to Edinburgh outside of festival time. Neither has Aled. "It’ll be the same but different," he said. "It’ll be wearing it’s winter coat," he said as he looked out of the window at Newcastle. "While Sydney is putting it’s shorts on, Edinburgh is pulling on a thick jumper," said Tom. Then he said, "I wonder if we could knit a giant jumper for Pele and present it to him as a gift at the next World Cup. A nice golden yellow one trimmed with green." Aled said we probably could but he’d be unlikely to wear it because the World Cup was taking place in South Africa and it’d be too hot.

As we get ever closer to Edinburgh I’d like to use this opportunity to say another "thank you’ to the Sydney Festival for inviting me to present 360 in January. I’m really looking forward to it.
Goodbye for now.

Hugh Hughes

[I found this lovely photo on Flickr by laurencea taken during a London to Edinburgh train journey. I'm guessing it was during the snow we had in January this year. Thought it illustrated Hugh's blog nicely. Simon]

[pps. we've just had this lovely review come in for Story of a Rabbit]

Hugh learns to Tweet and is off down under... again!

With Story of a Rabbit out on tour, there's plenty going on at the moment. And we have lots of exciting news to report as well!

First up, for those of you who follow us on Twitter, you'll have noticed that in the last 24hours a brand new voice has been joining in the conversation, our very own Hugh Hughes.

Now that he's the (very) proud owner of an iPhone (other phones are available), I've taught Hugh how it all works and he spent his journey up to Edinburgh today sharing his thoughts on the world around him.

As there will now be multiple voices sharing the Hoipolloi account, we'll try and reduce confusion by signing off each tweet with who we are! Hugh's been busy doing that today and from now onwards, I'll be adding 'SB' to the end of my tweets so you can tell whose voice is whose!

I've also taught Hugh the simplicity of audioboo and he's promised to make a least one boo during his time at the Traverse this week. I'll repost it here when he does.

Which reminds me to plug this week's performances of Story of a Rabbit. Hugh and Aled are at the Traverse from tonight (11th) until Saturday (14 Nov). Tickets can be booked by calling 0131 228 1404 or via their website.

Perhaps our most exciting news is that Hugh will be returning to Australia to perform 360 as part of the presitigous Sydney Festival from 22 to 30 January 2010.

A copy of the brochure landed in the office this morning and we'll be joined by some illustrious company from the UK... Edinburgh Comedy Award-winner Tim Key, Isy Suttie (from Peep Show), a charming family show from Oxford Playhouse and Rupert Goold's acclaimed Six Characters in Search of an Author.

I've heard via Twitter that tickets are already flying out the door for Hugh's limited season (just 8 perfs) so if you're in Sydney or know someone there who should go, get them to the box office swiftly!

Details of how to book and the full festival programme can be found by clicking here.

And my final plea, if you've been to see Story of a Rabbit, why not share your thoughts by commenting here on the blog, visiting our Facebook groups (Hoipolloi or Hugh Hughes) or via the delights of a tweet. Thank you!

Posted by Simon Bedford (Producer, Hoipolloi)